Danann remained silent in the turbolift as they descended to the transporter room.First Contact with a newly warp-capable species?Holy shit!? Wow.

The very prospect thrilled her and terrified her in equal measure, and with the Captain seemingly in an endless conversation with that Romulan, it was up to her and Roj' to see this went smoothly.

She looked over at her XO, then at the assembled Away Team. She wasn't going to say it out loud, but she didn't much fancy their chances of getting out of here gracefully.

Aaaand, there was her own, personal fear of planet surfaces to contend with, too. For a station rat like herself, the prospect of having NO ROOF over her head and no grav-plating under her boots was disquieting. She could be told a hundred different ways that planetary gravity wasn't going to suddenly disappear, and that she wouldn't just... float off into space... but some fears simply aren't rational, and Niamh was not looking forward to blue sky overhead.

She preferred her faulty gravity indoors...

---

“OK... everyone listen up!” The assembled prospects continued to chat and horseplay, the call for attention completely unheeded.

“THREE... TWO...ONE!” Coach Xi blew a whistle she had around her neck. The silence after the high-pitched whale dissipated was complete. “I said... listen up!”

The cadets did as they were told, all conversations held until later. “Now, I know you're all excited to be here, but remember we're only looking for reserves this year, and it's unlikely, let's face it, that any of you will make the grade, so shut up, listen up and line up on your marks!”

Xi observed the resulting jumble as the twenty or so cadets slowly oraganised themselves into three straight rows, each cadet behind a small, cuplike impression in the ground. She pinched her nose. It was gonna be a long year, she realised.

“All right, everyone. Welcome to Starfleet Academy, Zero-G football tryouts. You all now Yae Tollan, senior captain...” she waved to a tall, lithe brunette who was leaning off to the side of the room, beside a similar cup-shaped groove in the wall. “Hey all,” she said with a self-conscious wave. Of course everyone knew who she was. She was a hero, open, friendly. Starfleet poster girl.

Xi, eyed up her new batch of potentials with growing contempt. She spotted track runners, swimmers, one or two non-athletic kids who probably figured floating in zero gravity would make getting their physical activity credit a lot easier to accomplish. There were also a few unknowns dotted through the ranks, too.

Destined to remain in obscurity, too, she thought as she flipped a switch on a small control pad strapped to her arm. Let's get this over with.

“Whoa!”“What the-” “Aaaargh! Let go!”

She smiled as she watched the recruits wobble like new borns as gravity disappeared from the room. With their feet no longer glued to the ground, the latent pressure that had existed had been enough to push them a few inches into the air.

“Lesson one!” she called, as backs, butts and feet started pointing at her where recruit's faces had been moments earlier, “...gravity is a luxury, not a-”“Oh god...” one recruit huffed, the tell tale sign of gravity sickness kicking in early. Seconds later, he'd spattered those closest to him in minestrone.

Xi frowned. “Lesson Two! When I said in the recruitment notice to have a light lunch... I meant it! Tollan, get him out of here?”Tollan, safely on the ground, thanks to her grasp on the hand hold, shot off across the room, connecting her feet with the sick prospect, sending him reeling towards the exit, and the safety of gravity beyond. Tollan returned to her original place effortlessly.

Xi turned back to what now resembled a medieval depiction of the descent into hell. Legs, arms, bodies fumbling this way and that, recruits latching on to each other, pushing past each other, trying to right themselves at their fellow recruit's expense, only to find themselves and their victim spinning faster and more erratically than before. It was the same every year.

She scanned the bedlam, her attention snagging on an outlier. “What's your name, Cadet?” she called to the one recruit who still seemed upright, and remarkably still.“Danann, ma'am”, the young, red-head called as she floated placidly, separate from the mess, her feet inches from the ground, her knees bent gently.“Wanna tell me what you're doing?”“I um...” Danann's cheeks flushed, “...floating?”Xi laughed. Sometimes, these first years were worth the effort. “Come over here,” she ordered, simply.

Danann, blinked, looked at her classmates, some of whom had managed to right themselves, others resigned to floating in gentle arcs this way and that til tryouts were over. She looked over at Xi, only a few feet away across the floor.

“Yes, ma'am...” she responded, scanned the room, stretched her legs to tip the ground, and pushing off across the large, cube-shaped enclosure. She collided with the far wall, grappling for the hand hold she had been aiming for. She twisted her fingers into it, and held fast, then, turned, and aimed herself at the coach, pushing off once more and sailing through the air.

She misjudged her speed, coming at Xi faster than anticipated, but luckily, the coach - a former player herself - was able to grab the toe-hold at her own feet, pivot out of the way and slow the young woman's approach with a gentle swing.“Not bad, Cadet” Xi said, as she helped Danann to right herself. “I've seen worse attempts.” Danann, red-faced and feeling more embarrassed than triumphant, nodded mutely. Xi tapped her wrist control, reactivating gravity, and creating what she affectionately termed a “Cascade of Cadets”.

“Try outs over, everyone. Better luck next season!”

“You know,” Tollan said, as she linked arms with Danann and lead her away, “I once saw a recruit try to walk over to coach when she pulled that “c'mere” routine. He'd done so well in the zero-g test, too, but then there he was, looking for all the world like he was riding an invisible bicycle.” She laughed at the memory. “Dude ended up stuck near the ceiling like a half-inflated balloon.”

Xi paced past the two girls, slapping Danann on the back. “Welcome to the squad, Danann. Reserves are expected to make it to every training session, regardless, understood? Work now, reap later.”“Yes ma'am!” Danann stuttered, it suddenly dawning on her that all those years living on stations with faulty grav-plates was coming in useful.

---

The turbolift door opened, snapping Niamh back to the present. She hung back for a moment as the Away Team filed out. She hoped at least, if her worst fears came to pass down there, that she'd have a toe-hold nearby.

Niamh had beamed up to the Hyperion with the others after their initial meeting. The thrill of First Contact still in her veins and thoughts about her body's need for the serum far from her thoughts for once.

She had stepped aside for a moment to collect her thoughts after meeting the Mo'an pilot. It had been a singular experience to shake the hand of someone so skilled and brave, someone who's actions had instantly endeared her to Niamh. It was like meeting Cochrane. Almost. Cochrane would have known how to shake hands, she suspected.

She smiled as she leaned back on her seldom-used desk, a few scant ornaments gracing one corner, an image of her and her zero-g Academy team adorning the other. She chuckled and picked it up, activating it and watching the entire team as one, jump up and down, a trophy clutched in multiple hands. Her red hair bounced and her young face beamed. Those had been good times.

Suddenly, her comm badge chirped - a report from the bridge. Apparently, the Romulans had pulled a fast one, using Rome's actions on Vintaki, among other things, against him.

"Christ, I knew it," she complained aloud. "I knew this would happen." Once more, she looked at the holoimage in her hand. Addressing the happy team she said, "Stay where you are, lads. You're better off at the Academy..." Placing the frame down gently, she stood, stretched, and groaned.

Things were definitely about to get serious, she sensed. Distractedly, she scratched the side of her neck, the skin raw, but healing, and headed back up to the bridge.

The whiskey had helped settle her nerves. Of course, Goodman's show of interest had rather jangled them again, but in a way, his attention was nonetheless welcome. It felt nice, after and all that palaver with Kette, losing Antonia, and then Tony, and her faith on humanity, to have an articulate, bright young officer interested in getting to know her.And he was cute, you know?Too young, too naive, possibly too refined... but cute as a button, bless him.

"Bridge"

The 'lift brought her upwards though the decks, the lights on the walls flashing past. Sooner than she'd have liked, the 'lift slowed and the doors whispered open. She crossed the bridge, deliberately avoiding eye contact with the woman at the Tactical console. That.. was a conversation for another day.

As she hit the chime to the Ready Room, she realised two things; her hair was down, and her jacket was unfastened. "Shit!" she cursed aloud as the doors slid open.

There stood the Captain in nothing but his trousers and red tunic. She could spy a blanket laid over the couch behind him. "Commander." He stepped out of the way to let her in and turned to the replicator. "Raktajino, double strong double cream". He waited for the mug to appear before taking his seat by the desk.

Somehow, his own level of undress made her feel a little less out of place. Nonetheless, she pulled her jacket closed and stepped in. He was the Captain, after all; he could walk around in a bunny suit if he wanted. It didn't excuse a lack of neatness on the part of his crew.

"Captain, I'm sorry if I'm disturbing you," she eyed the blanket on the sofa, distracted briefly. "I'll come back, if you would prefer?"

He made a nuh-uh sound and shook his head as he swallowed his coffee. "I'm up. What do you want?" He was unusually unceremonial as he sipped of his coffee, trying to clear the fog of sleep from his mind. "Been a long day" he added before placing the mug back down on the desk.

"I won't take up too much of your time, sir," she replied, suddenly feeling as if she already had.Should have had another whiskey..., she thought before continuing. "I just wanted to thank you, sir, for your trust in me. After... everything..." she pressed on, lightly grazing over her withdrawl-induced gross insubordination, "... the Second Officer position means a lot to me, Captain. I won't let you down."

Jonathan eyed her with a small smile tugging at his lips. "Whiskey?". He could smell it on her breath. "If you want to be on my command team I suggest you learn to appreciate rum". He leaned back in his seat before continuing. "Feyna did a damn good job but I need an experienced command officer next to Lyon when I'm away or kidnapped again or whatever Starfleet throws at us next. That leaves me with you. I expect you to take that position seriously this time around"

"I will, on both counts." She attempted a smile, and forced her arms to relax at her sides, adopting what she hoped was a less tense posture. "I think, being a floating XO was a lot easier. You can step in, take over, fill in where needed and befriend an entire crew... then leave before anything gets too serious. The Hyperion has been my first permanent position. I guess I underestimated the pressure that could come with that."But, I've learnt a lot under your command. I understand why you did what you did on Vintaki, now."

He raised a surprised eyebrow at that. "And what have you learned, Commander?"

"That the view can be very different from the command chair." She laced her fingers together, resting them thoughtfully under her chin as she advanced a few paces. "That the Prime Directive is only as powerful as the Captain who wields it. And that... the lawful choice isn't necessarily the most moral." She stopped there. She still disagreed with his decisions on Vintaki, with his willingness to provoke the Romulans, but she understood why he did it nonetheless.

"I'm- I'm surprised to hear you say that"

"Ensign Goodman said something on the bridge that got me thinking, sir. He objected to an order. In theory, he had a point, but in practice..."

"In practice...we need order. The whole thing collapses if there isn't order Commander. It's the job of the command staff to decide on a course of action. Starfleet is not a democracy"

"Not a democracy, sir, no," she cleared her throat, counted to three, thought to hell with it, and continued, "but I think we should work hard to keep it honest, even if that adds a certain degree of chaos."

"What is life without chaos" he added somberly but then smiled softly. "That's why I listen. But in the end the decisions lie with me. Or Lyon...sometimes even you. Are you strong enough to make your own decisions, even if they might draw ire?"

"For better or worse, sir, I think I've already proven that in the past." She avoided direct eye contact.

"So you have. Alright Commander, just remember that this seat requires you to put aside your own beliefs, but not at the expense of your morals. Usually"

"I guess... if I'm willing to give my life for the Federation... it'd be pretty hypocritical not to willingly let go of the occasional ideal..." she replied, a flash of disappointment crossing her pale features. That sounded right... but it left her cold.

He noticed. "And now you understand what I did at Vintaki"

"I understand that doing something is usually preferable to doing nothing. It certainly feels better. And I see now that your actions will help strengthen the bond between the Republic and the Federation. That could lead to great things in the future." She crossed her arms and thought aloud, "I had only viewed it from the Empire's side. What would they do next? What form would their retaliation for our interference take? And in light of recent events, I think I am still justified in those concerns, but..." she licked her lips, "...my perspective lacked balance. I was only seeing the dark side."

“I will probably live to regret pissing the Romulans off. But it was worth it, those lives were worth it….young Jedi” he smirked at her and grabbed his coffee. “I’m glad you’re seeing things more clearly”

"I'm not sure I'd say I'm seeing things more clearly, so much as... I'm aware of how murky they are... But," she smirked, relaxing a little, "at least there's that."

She looked around the room, her eyes alighting once more in the makeshift bed Rome had recently vacated.

He noticed her alcohol induced glance at is makeshift cot and swallowed. He’d seen this happen a lot, late nights in the Captain’s ready room…lines got blurred. But he had never even considered it. Not after Kar. He cleared his throat “Thank you Commander, that will be all”

His suddenly abrupt tone pulled her attention immediately away from the cot. The look on his face was... oh crap, no, that's not what she... She sighed, her shoulders slumping.

"Yessir," she replied, the urge to kick herself building. "Thank you for your time, Captain." She paused, cleared her throat, gave the cot one last involuntary glance and turned.

Jonathan ran a hand through his beard as she left the office and sighed. As if things weren’t complicated enough. He glanced at his monitor’s notification light, blinking for an incoming message. Admiral Hill….of course.